Roma Downey and Mark Burnett are the film’s producers, who have made a name for themselves making Christian-themed films and documentaries. (Previously, Mark Burnett was the executive behind TV series like “Survivor” and “The Voice.”)

The key factor, said Bock, is that compared to earlier faith-based successes with budgets closer to $10 million, recent Hollywood films such as “Noah” and “Exodus” cost upwards of $100 million.

“And they’re not necessarily paying off when they’re spending that much,” Bock said.

So the stakes are high, and despite being panned by critics, Paramount is hoping “Ben-Hur” will clear $20 million this weekend. They recut the trailers to add more Christian imagery, perhaps hoping for a little divine intervention at the box office.